Archive | March, 2011

The Kent County Sheriff Department has partnered with CrimeReports to provide the public with on-line crime mapping. By connecting to www.CrimeReports.com, the public can see a daily updated crime map showing when and where the sheriff’s department has responded to calls for service. Primarily, township residents will be able to view a crime map showing activity in and around their neighborhoods.

“Providing reliable, timely information to our citizens is one of our top priorities,” said Undersheriff Jon Hess. “The CrimeReports service gives us the ability to keep the public informed on a regular basis as to what is going on in the community.”

The CrimeReports service lets local citizens sign up for free customizable email alerts, so they can stay on top of crime in their neighborhood and allows citizens to submit tips about area crimes directly to Silent Observer. They hope that giving the community this information will help them prevent and solve crime in their neighborhoods.

Motorists are reminded to designate a sober driver before heading out to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day or they could find themselves in need of a pot of gold. Those who choose to drive drunk after celebrating at the local tavern could face serious penalties and costly fines.
Last year on St. Patrick’s Day, 101 people were arrested in Michigan for drunk driving, according to the Michigan State Police, Criminal Justice Information Center. Thirty-four of those arrested had a blood alcohol content (BAC) of .17 or higher. Two people died in alcohol-involved crashes.
“Drunk drivers will need more than the luck of the Irish,” said Michael L. Prince, Office of Highway Safety Planning director. “Michigan law enforcement take drunk driving very seriously. If you drive drunk you will be caught and you will be arrested.”
In Michigan, it is illegal to drive with a BAC of .08 or higher, although motorists can be arrested at any BAC level if an officer feels they are impaired. As of Oct. 31, 2010, motorists face enhanced penalties for a first-time conviction with a .17 BAC or higher, under the state’s high BAC law.
A motorist convicted of drunk driving can expect to face serious consequences including:
• Up to 93 days in jail
• Up to a $500 fine
• Up to 360 hours of community service
• 180 days driving suspension
• Six points on a driver’s licenses
If convicted under Michigan’s new high BAC law, in addition to points on their driver’s license and community service, enhanced penalties for first-time drivers include:
• Up to 180 days in jail
• Up to a $700 fine
• One year license suspension with restrictions permitted after 45 days
• One year mandatory alcohol treatment program or self-help program
Motorists who wish to have limited driving privileges following a 45-day license suspension may do so only after a breath alcohol ignition interlock device is installed on their vehicle. An ignition interlock requires a driver to blow into the device and prevents a vehicle from starting if it measures a BAC of .025 or above.
In addition, all convicted drunk drivers are subject to a $1,000 fee for two consecutive years, for a total of $2,000 in additional costs. Anyone who refuses a breath test the first time is given an automatic one-year driver’s license suspension.

Father Murphy walks into a pub and says to the first man he meets, “Do you want to go to heaven?”
The man said, “I do, Father.”
The priest said, “Then stand over there against the wall.”
Then the priest asked the second man, “Do you want to got to heaven?”
“Certainly, Father,” was the man’s reply.
“Then stand over there against the wall,” said the priest.
Then Father Murphy walked up to O’Toole and said, “Do you want to go to heaven?”
O’Toole said, “No, I don’t Father.”
The priest said, “I don’t believe this. You mean to tell me that when you die you don’t want to go to heaven?”
O’Toole said, “Oh, when I die, yes. I thought you were getting a group together to go right now.”

A benefit will be held at the Harvard Tavern on Sunday, March 27, for Nancy Samsel, who suffers from congestive heart failure and chronic emphysema. Samsel was an employee at the Tavern for 20-plus years, and now is not working and has no insurance to pay her medical bills. There will be an all-you-can-eat buffet for $10, a live auction at 1 p.m., Deal or No Deal following the auction, and 50/50 raffles. Hog and beef raffle tickets are $10. They are giving away two 1/2 hogs, and one ¼ beef. Winners will be drawn during the benefit. All proceeds from benefit go to Nancy Samsel. If you’d like to donate or have questions, call the Harvard Tavern at 754-7028.

Come on out and support the Cedar Springs senior all-night party by enjoying a meal at McDonald’s tonight, Thursday, March 17 between 4-7 p.m. A portion of the sales from both the dining room and drive-thru will be donated to the senior all-night party committee to help support the safe activities planned on graduation night for this year’s seniors. We look forward to seeing you!

Have you subscribed yet to the Cedar Springs Post? If not, you are missing out on a chance to win some great prizes from local businesses!
You, too, can win by subscribing to the Post for only $25 per year. Fill out the entry form on this page and mail, or subscribe through our website (www.cedarspringspost.com) using Paypal.
This week’s winners are:
*Rory Kidder, of Cedar Springs, won a $5 gift card from Family Video on Main Street in Cedar Springs.
*Stacey Koning, of Courtland Township, won a large one-topping pizza from Hungry Howies on Main Street in Cedar Springs.
*Todd and Brenda Galloway, of Solon Township, won four movie tickets to the Kent Theatre at 8 N. Main St. in Cedar Springs.
Winners must pick up their prizes HERE at the Post within 30 days or the prize will be awarded to someone else. We are open from 9-5 Monday through Friday. Please call 696-3655 to make other arrangements.
Thanks so much to the businesses partnering with us in this drive! If you are a business who would like to donate a prize, call us at 696-3655.
*Subscribers are assigned a number, and then chosen at random through a computer website, www.random.org.

Pastor Craig T. Owens

Calvary Assembly of God

The apostles returned to Jesus from their ministry tour and told Him all they had done and taught. Then Jesus said, “Let’s go off by ourselves to a quiet place and rest awhile.” He said this because there were so many people coming and going that Jesus and His apostles didn’t even have time to eat. So they left by boat for a quiet place, where they could be alone. (Mark 6:30-32, NLT)

Sometimes dinner is more than dinner.

Jesus recognized this. He wanted to get away with His friends just to have a quiet meal and some meaningful conversation.

In many ways our lives are as busy as those who tried to talk with Jesus. In the hustle and bustle of over-filled calendars, after-school activities, and the constant bombardment of TV, computers and cell phones, we don’t even have time to eat together. And the biggest victim is our kids. Just like Jesus’ followers were longing to spend time with Him, your kids are longing to spend time with you.

So set aside time for dinner this week. In fact, set aside as many days in the week as you can. Turn off the TV and cell phones and iPods, and just enjoy each others’ company.

Check out the advantages of simply eating together:
• Families who eat dinner together eat healthier.
• Families who eat dinner together have higher communications skills.
• Children in families who eat dinner together perform better academically.
• Children in families who eat dinner together are less likely to try cigarettes, illegal drugs, or alcohol.

Mom and Dad, dinner with your kids is way more than just dinner. It’s an investment in their future that will return incredible rewards! So when you make time for dinner, you’re making time for something far greater than just food.

Seekers Wanted—Organized and Otherwise

My children are organizationally challenged. More bluntly, they are slobs. Left to themselves they would wear the same unwashed shirt for a month, inches of rust would gather behind their ears, and mold would grow on their teeth. And spontaneously cleaning their rooms? Forget about it. They simply do not care about orderliness, sanitation, or hygiene.

If you don’t believe me, come have a cup of coffee with me some morning and watch them leave for school. They head out the door with their pencils, lunch money, and supplies dropping from their hands, pockets, and backpacks like scattering birdseed. And their notebooks look like a three-ringed junk yards. Notes, homework assignments, flyers from the book fair, old report cards: All this scrap and crap is hanging out everywhere.

Yet, they are eager, excellent students, so I have to learn to set aside some of my “cleanliness is next to godliness” obsession and just help them where I can. Besides, I would rather have them be willing-and-curious-but-cluttered students than orderly, tidy slackers.

The same can be said about those who seek a relationship with Christ. Not all these seekers can be found inside the church or at the regular scheduled time of weekend worship. This doesn’t mean there is no value to what happens in our houses of worship on Sunday (or whatever day one gathers), or that gathering in community isn’t important.

It simply means that some very sincere seekers of Jesus may not come to us wearing their Sunday finest and polished wingtips. They may not have a big, red, memorized Bible tucked neatly beneath their arm. They may not have all their beliefs hammered out.

On the contrary they may be confused, conflicted, or plain clueless when it comes to life and their beliefs. Their personal, relational, and family lives may be a disastrous mess (with scrap and crap everywhere). They may be rusty and moldy. But this doesn’t mean these folks aren’t seeking God or that God isn’t very busy in their lives.

The more we understand Jesus, the more we must realize that people encounter him all the time, and all over the place, even before they realize who he is or how to call his name. They hunger for, and we pray for, that moment of recognition. And when it comes, we rejoice that God has rewarded another eager child who has come diligently seeking.

Ronnie McBrayer is the author of “Leaving Religion, Following Jesus.” He writes and speaks about life, faith, and Christ-centered spirituality. Visit his website at www.ronniemcbrayer.net.